Demonstrators who sued the city in the wake of a May Day melee in MacArthur Park, in which Los Angeles police fired about 12 dozen rubber bullets into the crowd, will receive $12.85 million under a settlement approved today by the City Council.

The May 1, 2007, clash between police officers, demonstrators and journalists resulted in more than 300 claims and lawsuits. After reviewing the incident for more than a year, Los Angeles Police Department brass recommended that four officers be fired for their actions that day.

The Board of Rights also recommended that three officers receive official reprimands; five officers receive three-day suspensions; two officers receive a five-day suspension; and one officer receive a 10-day suspension.

What had been a peaceful rally in support of rights for immigrants turned violent when 20 to 30 people threw rocks and bottles at police officers, who responded by firing rubber bullets into the crowd, injuring more than 200 people.

An extensive report released by the LAPD in October 2007 determined that a lack of planning, training and orderly supervision hampered officers on May Day and led to the violent end.

When those findings were released, police Chief William Bratton stood before more than a dozen television cameras and reporters and said he was sorry for the department’s reaction to the May 1 protest.

“This is an event that I deeply regret. I accept full responsibility for it because it occurred on my watch.

My apologies to the men and women of the Los Angeles Police Department and to the public,” he said then.

The multimillion-dollar payout comes one week after the council approved a $20.5 million settlement for four police officers who were prosecuted during the corruption probe of the Los Angeles Police Department’s Rampart Division, and later had their convictions overturned.